Original Chinese Boxer Rebellion Plaited Bamboo Wicker Boxer Helmet c. 1895 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This is a very nice Chinese boxer rebellion era helmet, made from plaited bamboo wicker. It measures just under 11 inches across, and about 6 inches in height, with no liner or straps inside. A simple design, not very effective against modern weapons, but still afforded some level of protection.

Condition is quite good, with just some staining on the inside, and light overall wear.

The Boxer Rebellion lasted from 1898 and lasted from 1899 – 1901 but affected the way the European and Western powers treated China thereafter. Remember the great movie 55 Days at Peking from 1963, where of course Charlton Heston once again saves mankind all on his own! Nevertheless a truly great movie.

The Boxer Rebellion:

The Boxer Rebellion, Boxer Uprising or Yihetuan Movement was a violent anti-foreign, anti-colonial, and anti-Christian uprising that took place in China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty. It was initiated by the Militia United in Righteousness (Yihetuan), known in English as the “Boxers”, and was motivated by proto-nationalist sentiments and opposition to Western colonialism and associated Christian missionary activity.

The uprising took place against a background of severe drought and the disruption caused by the growth of foreign spheres of influence. After several months of growing violence against both the foreign and Christian presence in Shandong and the North China plain in June 1900, Boxer fighters, convinced they were invulnerable to foreign weapons, converged on Beijing with the slogan “Support the Qing government and exterminate the foreigners.” Foreigners and Chinese Christians sought refuge in the Legation Quarter. In response to reports of an armed invasion to lift the siege, the initially hesitant Empress Dowager Cixi supported the Boxers and on June 21 issued an Imperial Decree declaring war on the foreign powers. Diplomats, foreign civilians and soldiers as well as Chinese Christians in the Legation Quarter were placed under siege by the Imperial Army of China and the Boxers for 55 days.

Chinese officialdom was split between those supporting the Boxers and those favoring conciliation, led by Prince Qing. The supreme commander of the Chinese forces, the Manchu General Ronglu (Junglu), later claimed that he acted to protect the besieged foreigners. The Eight-Nation Alliance, after being initially turned back, brought 20,000 armed troops to China, defeated the Imperial Army, and arrived at Peking on August 14, relieving the siege of the Legations. Uncontrolled plunder of the capital and the surrounding countryside ensued, along with the summary execution of those suspected of being Boxers.

The Boxer Protocol of 7 September 1901 provided for the execution of government officials who had supported the Boxers, provisions for foreign troops to be stationed in Beijing, and 450 million taels of silver (approximately $10 billion at 2017 silver prices and more than the government’s annual tax revenue) to be paid as indemnity over the course of the next thirty-nine years to the eight nations involved. The Empress Dowager then sponsored a set of institutional and fiscal changes in an attempt to save the Dynasty by reforming it.